You need to shop smarter- eliminate the crackers, bread, yogurt, jams. Learn how to make your own bread and crackers, as well as yogurt and cheese. Bread is easy to make, but you could also buy a bread machine. Get creative with meals. Lower your portion size, it will make you healthier and prepare you for lean times to come. Instead of a 10 punch steak, make it 3-6 ounces. A gradual decrease in portions will help your body adjust. Intermittent fasting helps too. No food fo 12-16 hours. Check out egg prices at your local farmer. Find a farmer who raises grass fed/grass finished beef. The beef is more expensive, but less waste, less fat, and what a difference in taste and tenderness. If you must have sweets, make your own deserts. Cut out potato chips or make your own-also very easy and healthier-no preservatives. Also, if you aren’t vegetarian and have a family, buy two whole chickens. Roast the chickens and carve the meat off for dinner #1. Take all the bones after meat is removed, break the bones up, put in a large pot and cover with water. Cook for 4 hours. Strain the bones from the broth and set aside to cool. Add chopped onion, celery, carrots, and what other vegetables you like (spinach, kale, tomatoes, squash etc.) to the broth and cook until firm tender. Pick remaking meat off the bones and add to the pot. Add pasta or rice of your choice, salt and pepper, and parsley. Add a chunk of your homemade bread and you have meal #2. Depending on the size of your family, you may have soup left over and chicken for meal #3-which could be creamed chicken over potatoes or chicken pot pie. Same goes for beef soup-bake bones for flavor and follow the above process. A couple cans of tuna-make a cream sauce and have creamed tuna over toast, rice or crunchy chow mein noodles. Learn how to stretch your meals. Buy dry beans and lentils. Soak them and add a ham hock or a little cooked bacon to the pot for flavor along with diced carrots and onions. You have a cheaper protein meal.
While the thriftiness is commendable, time is money, and that's a lot of time involved. Not saying don't be frugal, but I would advise that everyone assess their time investment as cost.
I grew up with super frugal parents who were perpetually poor. I copied their example for years, and I struggled to survive but made the most of it. Then one day I realized the point of "time is money." I began to evaluate the things I did to save money as a time cost. It flipped a lot of the frugality on it's head, and now I am better off than I ever could have imagined being. Because I'm no longer over investing large blocks of time to save a small amount of money.
My formula is pretty simple: if I were at work, would I make more money in the time invested than I am saving? If so, skip it.
Not saying that's for everyone or that we shouldn't be frugal. I'm still a cheap bastard. Lol But I have met many people, especially those influenced by Depression era thinking, who burn up their days to save a buck instead of going out and making more. Be wise in your time investment.
Where I'm located, farmers are selling beef in bulk for something like 4 bucks a pound, which is going to be very competitive with grocery store prices for a much superior product. It's only more expensive because you have to buy a lot at one time
You need to shop smarter- eliminate the crackers, bread, yogurt, jams. Learn how to make your own bread and crackers, as well as yogurt and cheese. Bread is easy to make, but you could also buy a bread machine. Get creative with meals. Lower your portion size, it will make you healthier and prepare you for lean times to come. Instead of a 10 punch steak, make it 3-6 ounces. A gradual decrease in portions will help your body adjust. Intermittent fasting helps too. No food fo 12-16 hours. Check out egg prices at your local farmer. Find a farmer who raises grass fed/grass finished beef. The beef is more expensive, but less waste, less fat, and what a difference in taste and tenderness. If you must have sweets, make your own deserts. Cut out potato chips or make your own-also very easy and healthier-no preservatives. Also, if you aren’t vegetarian and have a family, buy two whole chickens. Roast the chickens and carve the meat off for dinner #1. Take all the bones after meat is removed, break the bones up, put in a large pot and cover with water. Cook for 4 hours. Strain the bones from the broth and set aside to cool. Add chopped onion, celery, carrots, and what other vegetables you like (spinach, kale, tomatoes, squash etc.) to the broth and cook until firm tender. Pick remaking meat off the bones and add to the pot. Add pasta or rice of your choice, salt and pepper, and parsley. Add a chunk of your homemade bread and you have meal #2. Depending on the size of your family, you may have soup left over and chicken for meal #3-which could be creamed chicken over potatoes or chicken pot pie. Same goes for beef soup-bake bones for flavor and follow the above process. A couple cans of tuna-make a cream sauce and have creamed tuna over toast, rice or crunchy chow mein noodles. Learn how to stretch your meals. Buy dry beans and lentils. Soak them and add a ham hock or a little cooked bacon to the pot for flavor along with diced carrots and onions. You have a cheaper protein meal.
While the thriftiness is commendable, time is money, and that's a lot of time involved. Not saying don't be frugal, but I would advise that everyone assess their time investment as cost.
I grew up with super frugal parents who were perpetually poor. I copied their example for years, and I struggled to survive but made the most of it. Then one day I realized the point of "time is money." I began to evaluate the things I did to save money as a time cost. It flipped a lot of the frugality on it's head, and now I am better off than I ever could have imagined being. Because I'm no longer over investing large blocks of time to save a small amount of money.
My formula is pretty simple: if I were at work, would I make more money in the time invested than I am saving? If so, skip it.
Not saying that's for everyone or that we shouldn't be frugal. I'm still a cheap bastard. Lol But I have met many people, especially those influenced by Depression era thinking, who burn up their days to save a buck instead of going out and making more. Be wise in your time investment.
Where I'm located, farmers are selling beef in bulk for something like 4 bucks a pound, which is going to be very competitive with grocery store prices for a much superior product. It's only more expensive because you have to buy a lot at one time